Oar-propelled vehicle



M. E. BENAS..

OAR PROPELLED VEHICLE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN.24, 1919.

1,821,030., Patented Nov. 4,1919.

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QAR-PROPELLED VEHICLE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 4, 1919.

' Applicationfiled January 24, 1919. Serial N0 272,946.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, MAURICE E. BENAS, a citizen of the United States, residing, at Nitro, in the county of Kanawha and State of est Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements-in Oar-Propelled Vehicles; and I do hereby declare the following to bea full, clear, and exact de scription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to improvements in toys running on wheels and intended to simulate boats propelled by oars, and called by me row-abouts.

My invention will be more clearly under stood after reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure l-shows a central vertical section through the vehicle, parts being shown. in elevation. p

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the complete device.

Fig. vice.

Fig. 4 is a detail showing the steering wheel as seen from the front, and on a larger scale than in the other figures.

Fig. 5 shows asection along the line 5-5 of Fig. 1, and looking in the direction of the arrows; and r 'Fig. 6 shows a section along the line 66 of Fig. 1, and looking in the direction of the arrows. V V v it represents the body of the vehicle which is. in the form of the hull of a boat, having the bottom or, preferably of wood, the sides a preferably of sheet metal, the forward covering or forecastle deck of, the stern post a? and the after deck a The thin metal sides a are preferably reinforced with wooden boards a which with the sides a are slotted at a, see Fig. 1.

B represents the seat having the back B which is shown in Fig. 2 as slatted.

O represents a cross piece which supports the axle D on which the driving wheels E are journaled, and F represents a stern post to which the yoke G is pivoted, and in which yoke the stern wheel H is journaled. This yoke is provided with a drum 9 and with a pin 9' projecting into the annular groove f on the reduced portion f of the stern post F. The yoke G is thus rotatably mounted upon the lower end of the stern post F.

Passing over the drum 9 is the steering 3 is a rear View of the complete derope or chain 1, the two ends of which lead forward and areconnected to the opposite ends of the lever K secured fast to the spin dle L. To the upper end of this spindle the'foot leverM is secured; thus by pressmg on one end or the other of the foot lever M the steering rope I swings the drum 9 and with it the steering wheel H in one direction or the other as desired.

The vehicle is propelled by two oars P and P, which have handles p projecting lnward through the slots t and are prevented from displacement in said slots by means of the shoulder 39 and the pins 72 see Fig. 6. These oars are freeto slide in the slots a and are thus held in the operative position against longitudinal displacement.

These oars P and P are connected by the connecting rods Q and Q to the pins and g carried by the driving wheels E. These plns Q and q are preferably set at different angles relative to each other 011 the wheels E, so that the oars will not both atany time be on a dead center.

In order toadd a further interest to the toy for children, its intended users, I provide a battery R mounted on the shelf a in theforward portion of the vehicle, and a headlight S controlled by the switch T, see Fig. l. I may also provide an electric bell U controlled by the push button V. Instead of an electric bell, any other kind of bell may be used ifdesired.

' The operation of the device is as follows:

The child climbs in the boat and seats himself on the seat' B, placing his feet against the ends of the foot lever M and, grasping the handles p of the oars, moves the oars backward and forward rotating the wheels E and causing the vehicle to either go ahead or astern as he may wish; thus the apparent effect being that he is moving the boats by pulling on the oars, which apparently engage the air only. The child may either flash his light, or keep it constantly going, or he may ring the signal bell whenever desired.

The toy may be large enough to have two children on the seat 13, each one pulling an oar, but one child only should act as helinsman. One or more passengers may be carried on the rear deck a It will thus be seen that I provide a vehicle which may he apparently propelled by flla' oars and may be steered in any desired direction, and in which flash lights or sound signals may be given if desired.

It will be obvious that the headlight and bell may be mere dummies or may be omitted altogether.

It will also be obvious that various modifications might be made in the herein described apparatus, and in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts which could be used without departing from the spirit of my invention, and I do not mean to limit myself to such details except as artieularly pointed out in theclaims.

I laving thus described my invention what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. A. toy of the character described, comprising a hull provided with oppositely disposed slots in the sides thereof and a seat, an axle mounted transversely of said hull with driving wheels journaled thereon, a yoke swiveled beneath said hull with a steering wheel journaled therein, a drum carried by said yoke, a double lever pivoted beneath the boat and having steering ropes connected to the ends thereof and passing aroundsaid drum, with means propelled by the feet of the driver for swinging said double leyer, and thus swinging said steering wheel, oars projecting through said slots, pins secured to said driving wheels, and connecting rods connecting said pins and said oars, substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. A to of the character described, comprising a hull provided with oppositely disposed slots in the sides thereof and a seat, an axle mounted transversely of said hull with driving wheels journaled thereon, a yoke swiveled beneath said hull with a steer-- ing wheel journaled therein, a drum carried by said yolge, a double lever pivoted beneath the boat and having steering ropes connected to the ends thereof and passing around said drum, with means propelled by the feet of the driver for swinging said double leprojecting through said slots, pins secured to said driving wheels, and connecting rods connecting said pins and said oars, a steering wheel pivotally mounted beneath the hull near the rear end thereof, and means operable by the feet of the driver for swinging said steering wheel laterally, substantially as and for the purposes described.

it. A toy of the character described, comprising a hull provided with oppositely disposed slots in the sides thereof and a seat, an axle mounted transversely of said hull with driving wheels journaled thereon, oars projecting through said slots, with means for holding said oars against longitudinal. displacement relative to said slots, pins secured to said driving wheels,-and connecting rods conecting saidpins and said oars, a steering wheel pivotally mounted beneath the hull near the rear end thereof, and means operable by the feet of the driver for swinging said steering wheel laterally, substantially as and for the purposes described.

' MAURICE E. BENAS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

